Despite swapping the European Cup holders for a team that finished seventh in the Premier League last season to miss out on the Champions League altogether, Di Maria said he was ready to help restore United to their former glory.

“I am absolutely delighted to be joining Manchester United,” he said. “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Spain and there were a lot of clubs interested in me, but United is the only club that I would have left Real Madrid for.

“Louis van Gaal is a fantastic coach with a proven track record of success and I am impressed by the vision and determination everyone has to get this club back to the top – where it belongs. I now just cannot wait to get started.”

After securing his move, Di Maria wrote an open letter to Real Madrid fans, noting that he was bitterly upset to have been made out to have been holding the club to ransom over his demands for a new contract.

“My cycle at Real Madrid has come to an end,” the winger wrote. “It’s impossible to capture everything I’ve experienced here in a few lines but I hope this letter communicates what I feel at the moment.

“I had the honour to wear this shirt for four years and I feel nothing but pride for what I went through and achieved with my team-mates.

“Unfortunately, I have to go but I want to make clear that this was never my desire. Like anyone who works, I’ve always wanted to progress.

“After winning La Decima I went to the World Cup with the hope of receiving a gesture from the board, which never arrived. Many things and many lies were told. Someone may not like me. The only thing I asked for was something fair.

“There are many things that I value and many of them have nothing to do with my salary. I hope to find them at Manchester United, one of the biggest clubs in the world.”

However, Di Maria was keen to pay tribute to his former colleagues and issued an apology to the Madrid fans for his behaviour during a sometime strained relationship with the crowd at the Bernabeu.

“I’ve been lucky to play in a team with fantastic players, who have been even better friends,” he continued. “I think that was the key to La Decima.

“I want to apologise for my mistakes, on and off the pitch. It was never my intention to hurt anyone. I sweated in every game I played in the [Madrid] shirt as if it were the last.”